There were many surprising moments for book readers in The Lord of the Rings, with Galadriel turning “dark” not the least of them, but this can be explained. English high fantasy master J.R.R. Tolkien introduced the world of The Lord of the Rings in The Hobbit, his 1937 children’s book. His magnum opus, The Lord of the Rings, was published in three parts between 1954 and 1955, introducing Galadriel. For some, this Galadriel didn’t quite gel with the scary figure who appeared in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

Around 50 years after The Lord of the Rings was published, Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies adapted Tolkien’s beloved work. Galadriel was a bastion of good with syncretic symbolism combining the pagan and natural with the Christian, riffing off Virgin Mary imagery. But Unfinished Tales complicated her substantially, and even in LotR, she had the capacity to dominate, as seen by her reaction to the One Ring. So Cate Blanchett’s movie Galadriel being momentarily terrifying had some basis, despite not being 100% faithful to the book.

Galadriel Wasn’t Actually Turning “Dark” In The Lord Of The Rings

Peter Jackson Got Creative With Galadriel’s Transformation

Galadriel appeared in negative colors during her temptation scene in The Fellowship of the Ring, temporarily terrifying Frodo and Sam, but she likely didn’t actually change color. By The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring’s ending, Galadriel had been successfully established as a beacon of light, but not before this brief foray into darkness. Metaphorically, Galadriel was turning “dark“ for a moment, to emphasize how the One Ring twisted her mind as she was tempted by it. But it wouldn’t make sense for Jackson to argue that Galadriel’s colors actually inverted.

The Lord of the Rings was set in the Middle-earth equivalent of the Medieval period, so the kind of pH๏τographic technology that would allow even being able to imagine color inversion of this kind wasn’t available. Lord of the Rings’ Galadriel is more powerful than others, even among Elves, but there are no Tolkien texts that point to her changing or inverting the color of herself or her environment. Jackson was using artistic license to try to show Frodo’s perspective. To him, she seemed suddenly taller, scarier, and more beautiful, all at once.

Galadriel’s Ring Of Power Contributed To Her Fearsome Aura

Galadriel’s Ring Of Power Made Her Stand Out

Tolkien described how Nenya, the Ring of Adamant, helped make Galadriel seem bigger and more powerful. In the novel, Frodo saw Galadriel in a different light in more ways than one. As Galadriel considered taking Lord of the Rings’ One Ring, she transformed from Frodo’s perspective. Artfully, Tolkien didn’t define whether Galadriel changed at all at that moment or if she was merely “seeming” different to Frodo. But one thing that did change materially and physically was Galadriel’s lighting, which was courtesy of the gleaming Ring of Power on her finger.

The Rings of Power in Lord of the Rings were not just worn by the Ringwraiths, but three of the Elves. As Galadriel considered taking the Ring in response to Frodo’s offer, she raised her hand. As one of the magical three Elven-rings, Nenya cast a spotlight on Galadriel from above. It illuminated her alone with a great beam of light that left everything else dark. The Fellowship of the Ring could have adapted this faithfully, but then it may also have had to do a little more explaining about Galadriel’s ring.

Why Galadriel Intimidates Frodo In The Lord Of The Rings

Galadriel Had The Potential To Wreak Havoc On Middle-Earth

Galadriel was one of Lord of the Rings’ most powerful Elves, and this did not go unseen by Frodo in volume one of The Lord of the Rings novel, The Fellowship of the Ring, and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring movie. Galadriel was reasonably intimidating from Frodo’s very first glimpse of her. Although beyond beautiful, she had a penetrating gaze that appeared more than just inquisitive. Indeed, Galadriel was adept at ósanwe – Middle-earth’s version of telepathy. Upon meeting Fellowship members like Frodo, Galadriel read them.

Some Fellowship members could sense this. Frodo knew that Galadriel had uncanny powers that he wasn’t used to, and that she wouldn’t hesitate to use them on the offensive if she had to. As such, it was no surprise that Galadriel seemed bigger, taller, and scarier to Frodo as she held up her Ring and contemplated adding another to her collection. Galadriel wasn’t trying to intimidate Frodo, but Frodo could be forgiven for finding her intimidating. Galadriel certainly wanted him to understand the dark power he was dealing with in the One Ring.

Gandalf Had A Similar Moment In The Lord Of The Rings, But Better

Peter Jackson Had A Way Of Drawing Out Key Moments In The Lord Of The Rings

As Galadriel did during the Mirror of Galadriel scene, Gandalf appeared more intimidating to a Hobbit at one point, but his moment may have been more artfully executed. Suddenly growing bigger and scarier, Galadriel’s moment in negative colors paralleled one unforgettable Gandalf moment in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. When Gandalf was visiting Bilbo at his home, Bag End, in Hobbiton, Bilbo contemplated keeping the One Ring for himself instead of leaving it to Frodo. Gandalf rose up to his full height, shocking Bilbo into remembering himself.

This transpired in the book in a similar fashion to how Galadriel intimidated Frodo in “The Mirror of Galadriel” chapter. Gandalf “seemed” to get taller and more menacing to Bilbo, just like how Galadriel seemed taller and scarier to Frodo. Gandalf’s shadow filled the room. This was adapted uncannily by Jackson and his crew, Ian McKellen’s presence alone enough to fill a room. The scaling of the sH๏τ appeared to transform before viewers’ very eyes as Gandalf magically wobbled into a larger being. This subtlety was more suitable for The Lord of the Rings than Galadriel’s starkly contemporary negative color.